So here is the first list. I've chosen 1500 because it's possible to just barely squeeze in the main elements of a list, can serve as the basis for a larger force, and is still the standard game size in most areas.
HQ:
Hive Tyrant w/ Lashwhip and Bonesword, Paroxysm, Leech Essence, Wings, TL BL Devourers, Hive Commander
Elites:
2 Zoanthropes in Mycetic Spore
2 Zoanthropes in Mycetic Spore
Troops:
10 Termagants
Tervigon w/ Dominion, Cluster Spines, Catalyst
8 Genestealers w/ toxin sacs
8 Genestealers w/ toxin sacs
Heavy Support:
Mawloc
Trygon Prime
This is a null deployment list - nothing starts on the table. This mitigates two of the Tyranids' biggest weaknesses: speed and durability. First off, there is no safe place on the board. The Tervigon and Genestealers can assault 12" - 18" from the short edges, while everything but the Tyrant can deepstrike virtually without fear of mishap. Secondly, having nothing on the board until turn 2 guarantees at least one turn of wasted enemy fire, two with luck, and ensures that I get in the first shot.
The Zoanthropes are for heavy tank busting, while the Tyrant, Trygon, and Mycetic Spores are there to shut down vehicles and whittle away dangerous units before finishing them off in assault. The Termagants are included to unlock the Tervigon, and because there is inevitably an objective that needs to be held somewhere near my long table edge. The Tervigon outflanks, hopefully in conjunction with one of the Genestealer broods; Catalyst makes them much more survivable, while the sudden appearance of a 6 wound MC with them tends to make target prioritization more difficult.
Overall I feel the list can react to multiple opponents and setups, using the characteristics of each unit to create a swarm more dangerous than the sum of its parts. More thoughts on this later.
Monday, March 28, 2011
Do we really need a plan? How about a mission statement?
As you've probably guessed from the blog title, this is going to be about Warhammer 40k Tyranids and my continuing efforts to build a better world-devouring swarm. Since the release of our 5th edition codex and the... mixed... reaction to it, I have yet to see anything like conventional wisdom emerge on how to use it. Most of our old builds are gone, and the most we can agree on is that Tervigons and Hive Guard are pretty good. Unfortunately there's a big difference between recognizing "good" units in a codex and building an effective list. Hopefully I'll be doing the latter in the next few posts.
Sunday, March 27, 2011
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